Heredity of Pancreatic Cancer

Dear OncoLink "Ask the Experts,"
Is pancreatic cancer hereditary? What other risk factors are associated with pancreatic cancer?
Thanks!

Li Liu, MD, OncoLink Editorial Assistant, responds:

Dear T,
Thank you for your interest and question.

It has been proven that pancreatic cancer is essentially caused by mutations of DNA. Pancreatic cancer can be hereditary, and the inherited forms of pancreatic cancer account for approximately 10% of all cases. Some rare hereditary syndromes are associated with the early development of pancreatic cancer. These include: Peutz-Jeghers syndrome ( New England Journal of Medicine 1987, 316:1511-1514), carriers of BRCA2 gene (breast cancer gene), hereditary pancreatitis, familial pancreatic cancer, and hereditary colon cancer.